Chapter 12 #2
“I want to fuck her, not fuck with her, and I also want to make it my mission to give her the world. I just have to wait until she’s willing to let me in, but it’s gonna happen. You don’t have to come for me. I’m not gonna hurt your Nyelle.”
When Vega stepped away, he winked at Joi, whose mouth dropped a little before she smiled. “You’re really feeling her.”
“Hell yeah. I want Nyelle and I’m gonna have her. Not on any bullshit either. Where’s she at anyway? Why didn’t you bring my baby with you?”
“She has Nick. You haven’t talked to her?”
“Not since this morning. I’m about to check in right now though.
I’ll tell her I have my eye on you since you’re in my hood.
” Vega smiled at Joi. It was true. This wasn’t the place for a woman like Joi to be hanging out unprotected.
Not that he was worried, but just in case a muthafucker got ignorant, he would step up.
She was affiliated with East in a way, but no one knew.
Out of respect for East, in his absence, Vega would make sure Joi was good.
“Come on, Let’s get you a drink. What’s your poison?”
“Uhh, maybe something light. I don’t trust y’all up in here.” Vega chuckled and Joi thought about East warning her to be more careful.
“Good, you shouldn’t, but I have you, so it’s all good. You’re under my watch and Dix has your girl covered. I’m not trying to fuck shit up with Pretty Ny for letting anything happen to her girl.”
“Smart man.” Joi smiled at his confession.
To anyone who didn’t know the situation, the interaction with Vega and Joi looked intimate.
That was exactly what Nae assumed, so she took pictures of the two of them, making sure to get the ones that told a story.
In her mind it was the perfect opportunity to get back in East’s good graces.
He hadn’t entertained her in a minute and she knew it was because of Joi.
Nae was hoping she had the perfect thing to get her back in his bed and was about to set things in motion.
“What’s up, Young G?” Ace greeted East first when he settled into the passenger seat of his car.
When East reached out and requested the two meet up, Ace didn’t hesitate.
He gave him the code for a location the two were familiar with from past dealings.
It was an abandoned lot on the South Side, a gated property that Ace owned.
Nothing happened out there but private conversations when discretion was required.
Both men parked their cars in the massive metal garages and the doors were lowered to cut off visibility.
“That’s what I’m here to find out.” Ace’s face tightened, sensing that there was an issue. He waited for East to explain. “You know a Detective Patterson?”
East was well aware that Ace knew him. He had already called in a favor from a shorty he occasionally dealt with who had access to police files. What she handed over to East was that Patterson was the one who handled Vega’s case.
“You know the answer. You’re like me, East. The only reason you’re asking is to see my reaction. The question is why do you want to know?”
“He came to see me. Tossing out shit about me being seen with you that night at Presidential. He’s watching Vega. He knew that he was at my card game. You know about that?”
“Yeah and no. I assumed he would be. I have eyes on him now just for that reason. I should have likely done it when Vega touched down, but I didn’t.
” Ace gave East an apologetic look. His lapse in judgment could have avoided the conversation because Ace would have already known Patterson went to see East.
“I’ve been doing this too long to have heat now, Ace. What do I need to know so I can get my name off his list?”
East looked down at his phone, which vibrated with a message. Seeing Nae’s name, he ignored it.
“He’s not trying to put you in a box. He wants to be in your pockets. He’s dirty. Patterson is using the streets as a side hustle. All he wants is money.”
East laughed angrily under his breath. “I’ll put him in the ground before I give him one gotdamn penny. You know how I function.”
“I do, but it’s not necessary. He can’t touch what he doesn’t know exists.” Ace gave East a look of understanding.
Ace was well aware that East was still moving a little weight. He had long since separated from him, but it was mutual and no hard feelings. East had made Ace enough money in the years he worked for him that Ace would never have issue with East doing his own thing.
“I’m careful, but a man with a mission can still cause problems. I don’t want problems, so if I have to, I’ll handle it.”
“That would do us both a favor, but…it’s a detective, Young G.
” Ace wasn’t a killer. He paid people to get their hands dirty.
East had played that role for him on several occasions.
The risks were too high and not worth taking, in Ace’s opinion, but East didn’t care. If it were necessary, it was done.
East’s attention went to his phone again.
He got four more texts from Nae back to back, but this time picture messages, so he unlocked his phone and checked them out, assuming it was her trying to entice him.
It was nothing for her to send naked pics, but it had been awhile.
Being that he cut her off, he assumed she was putting in extra work to get back in his bed.
Unfortunately that wasn’t the visual he got.
East’s face tightened and his brows knitted together at the visual of Joi looking extremely intimate with Vega. He was heated instantly.
“I don’t give a fuck if he has a shield. If he’s a problem for me, then I’ll get rid of him. I’m almost done. I need a little more time to close out and if he’s going to get in the way of that…”
The look East delivered had Ace offering a nod of understanding.
“Give it a minute. Let me see what I can do on my end first. If I can’t handle it…”
“Then I will.” East finished the sentence with assurance that he meant what he said. “I have some shit to do. I’ll holla at you soon.”
East opened Ace’s door and neither spoke another word as he got out.
East was annoyed. After all this time surviving the bullshit, he gets to the finish line and things get complicated.
He wasn’t about to let one man fuck things up for him.
That was a promise, but right now, he needed to deal with Joi.
True enough he hadn’t really handled things with her the right way after the night they had sex, but it was all about him. Joi had him in a fucked up position.
She caused him to cross lines he never had issues staying away from before.
She was forcing his hand. It was a struggle for him not to call or text, but he needed the separation to figure out what the hell he was doing with her.
East didn’t know if he could handle a woman like Joi.
She was the type who demanded control, the one thing he never wanted anyone to have over him.
But the second he looked at the pictures that came through from Nae, he already knew it was too late.
His chest grew tight and he felt something he wasn’t familiar with.
East recognized exactly what it was but never had a woman caused those feelings to settle in his mind.
Jealousy. Possessiveness. He was pissed and ready to fuck shit up at the thought of Joi being with another man.
She and her girl were tight, so he was positive the pictures of her and Vega weren’t anything, but why the fuck she was around him was what he had an issue with. Had she moved on, maybe with someone Vega hooked her up with as a favor to her girl? Nah, that wasn’t happening.
When East left Ace, he was on his way to Joi.
He knew the spot, didn’t go often, but had been there enough times to recognize it.
It wasn’t the type of place where she needed to be and that rubbed him the wrong way too.
East wondered why she was there and why Vega was okay with Joi being there.
The spot was basically a hangout for dope boys and women who were familiar with or built for that life.
With what little East knew about Joi, that wasn’t her.
The drive was less than fifteen minutes from where East had met with Ace and the entire drive he processed how to handle the situation.
If he had to guess, Joi wasn’t fucking with him too tough after the way he went ghost on her.
She had texted a few times and his responses were simple.
It didn’t take long for her to get the hint and not try again, so he wasn’t sure how she would react not only to seeing him, but East demanding that she leave with him.
After parking, East pulled out his phone and texted Joi. The message was simple, and he had a feeling she wouldn’t respond, but he sent it anyway.
Where you at?
He waited, and as expected there was nothing.
Joi, on the other hand, was inside sitting at the bar watching Dix lose a game of pool to Vega while Ria stood guarded by Dix because of all the dirty looks she received from women who obviously didn’t appreciate the fact that she had Dixon’s attention.
It took Joi a minute to check her phone and when she noticed the text from East she smiled briefly before remembering the reason why they hadn’t talked. He played me.
Not in the mood to waste energy on a pointless situation, Joi rolled her eyes and cleared the message even though a part of her wanted to see him. It didn’t matter, she wasn’t about to be that girl. The one so into a man that he could blow her off and pop up on his terms.
“You’re cheating.” She lifted her eyes to find Dixon pointing at Vega. They were both smiling, so she assumed Dixon had actually lost. “Double or nothing.”
“Shit… rack ’em. If you want to give me all your money just to impress her, I’m with it. She already knows your ass can’t play though. Isn’t that right, shorty?” Vega looked at Ria whose eyes went right to Dix. She smiled, causing Vega to laugh.